Chapter 3: Welcome to the World of Beasts
2. Welcome to the World of Beasts.
Part 1. NEW SKILLS
***
"Host, the name you will be going by this mission is 'Flaire', you will be able to find the briefing I ran you through, in your notes under the 'Missions' tab on your system menu." EX754's electronic voice echoed in my mind as I slowly regain consciousness, my stomach's growling waking me from my slumber.
My red triangle ears twitch cutely as I open my eyes, my instincts taking over as I sniff the air to find a source of food. I get up from my position on a tree branch, stretching my four legs and cute red fox paws, swishing my fluffy red tail, my new body feeling energetic after a nap.
A chiming noise sounds in my head. "Host, as this is the first world, there are some limited-time free items and upgrades to help you out on your journey, you may want to check the system shop when you have time." The robotic voice of EX754 rings in my head.
"Huh? I guess it wouldn't hurt to take a look." I don't know how to hunt in this form, nor do I know how to change into one of my more human forms. Maybe the shop will have something to help me find some food? or give me an instruction manual for my new body? I sit on my branch and swish my fluffy tail back and forth where it hung beneath me. "Open system menu!"
A screen only I can see, pops into existence right in front of me, on it displays stats next to a picture of my original body, a point counter in the top right corner, and plus symbols next to my individual stats in a line down the screen. As well as various tabs at the bottom, such as 'Missions' 'Skills' 'Shop' 'Inventory' 'Body's Soul' 'System Buddy' etc.
I have no points as it's my first world, and I have yet to complete a mission, so I quickly lose interest in the first screen. Curiosity drives me to press on the 'Skills' tab, bringing up a list of (you guessed it) skills!... and a pop up!
[Dear Host! All 'Skills' have a level rank, and are PERMANENT advantages once maxed out, that can follow you throughout your journey! Your first three skill points are free! Though only one is a gold rank skill point worth an instant max out, so choose wisely!]
My eyes start shining. Maybe I can get some basic survival skills? Ah but first I should check out the rest of the tabs, maybe I'll get something useful without having to waste my free skills.
I wonder what the first mission is? Is it going to be difficult?
I press on the 'Missions' tab, and there is only one thing on there.
[Mission 1!: Blank Slate!.
The host doesn't have very many skills, so to even the odds, the system will gift a special reward to help you! Just consume, 1 basic skill point! 'Reward: 1 Gold skill point, and 1 bonus gift!']
Sounds easy enough, and that means I'll have two gold skill points. Now what skill should I use the basic point on? The basic skills can be upgraded later, but only the gold level skills can follow me to another world. So whatever I choose, I need to make sure I upgrade it all the way before leaving this world.
I switch the screen back to the skill menu marked 'beginner skills', scrolling through the list to make my decision. Cooking, baking, gardening, and cleaning, were all skills I already had a few points in because of past experience in first my life.
Foraging, hunting, fishing, fire building, and different fighting skills.
These are all base level skills needed to survive in this world, skills a city girl like myself doesn't have. As well as some non basics of course.
Like, 'fire manipulation', 'fox dance', and 'fox seduction'. Though it seems like these are limited time skills that could only be leveled up in this body. If I want to use them in later missions, I'll have to max out their levels.
Higher tiered skills required the corresponding 'beginner skills' to learn and level.
I go back to the item shop tab and hit it. 'There may be something to save my skill points in here.'
The shops tab opens, and I see all of the limited time free items EX754 was talking about.
Looking through them I select the useful ones, such as a leather space bag to store things in, a few health salves along with other medicinal items, a knife, and a basic survival kit that included a manual that describes how to light a fire in multiple ways, as well as a small tent for shelter.
With that kit I can safely say that I can skip the fire skill, and earn that one the old fashioned way. And after going through the survival kit and seeing it have a book on herbs and herbal medicine, and basic fishing tackle as well, I should be able to level up my fishing, and herbalist skills with some of my points after I put in some time leveling it up the hard way.
I decided on the basic combat skill after much deliberation, this one could be used in both of my forms, while other lower level combat skills only worked with one form or the other. I tab over to the skills again, putting one gold point into basic combat, and one basic point into hunting, hearing the chimes go off in my mind.
[Mission Completed: Host Rewards: 1 Gold skill point, and 1 bonus gift! Host, please get ready to accept your rewards!]
'???!'
The chimes sound again. "Host, 1 Gold skill point has been added to your inventory, would you like to open your mystery gift now? or store it and wait for another time?" EX754 asks.
"Go ahead and open it now EX, it may be useful." I reply after some thought.
"Host, the gift is some fragments of the memories of the body you're inhabiting. It seems like the mind of this body was damaged before, normally you would have access to the bodies memory already."
"Unsurprising, I skimmed through the role, and world description when I was looking through the system menu earlier. The girl's body would have been unusable had the system not put me farther back in time. The abuse and death of this girl couldn't have been pretty to witness firsthand." I solemnly replied. "Ex, download what memories we have, they are going to be useful either way."
"As you wish, Host."
My breath halted, and tail stopped it's lazy movements, as the memories hit and a pain in my head started and grew with increasing intensity, then it was over, the pain stopped when the memories did. After all was well, and I could breathe again.
"You could have freaking warned me, EX!" I gasp out. "That hurt like hell!"
"I apologize. The system does not register pain, so that was not within my calculations." EX754 voice echoed back. "On the scale of 1-10 what does 'hurt like hell' rank? I would like to enter the information into my database for future systems to reference."
I glare at the air where I'm imagining a certain system. "EX, you and I are going to need to have a real special talk later..."
"Is that a negative answer, Host?"
I roll my eyes. "It's a we'll talk about it at a later date, when hopefully I don't feel like chucking you out a window."
"That was quite rude."
"..." Rolling my eyes I put my energy into focusing on the task at hand, instead of arguing with EX754's insanity.
I closed the system menu for a few minutes and tried to focus on the memories left behind, and what was left was a burning desire to torch the whole village she had called home, flashes of the abuse she suffered there, and a few childhood memories.
It wasn't a lot, but it was enough for me to piece together how to shift between forms, and try out some basic hunting techniques in beast form that were taught to her as a child.
After pondering it for a while, I opened the system menu again and went to my skills menu. I placed a gold point with foraging, the last basic skill point was placed in hunting again. We never know what is around the corner, so combat, and foraging are both important skills, one to protect me, and the others to feed me.
Hunting will be an important skill to max out next, it will feed me, and I'll be able to sell any extra prey to villagers.
*chimes* [Dear host! 2 low level skills have reached maximum point value! These skills will now be permanently available to you in other worlds! But please remember to focus on upgrading your other skills! If they do not reach the maximum point value before you leave this world, any skills you've earned will be reset!]
Awesome! Now all I need is time and practice for my other skills to progress.
Not bad, not bad at all, I can work with this.
On top of that, it looks like the skills I've built up in my original world, stack on whatever skills I build through the system. And memories of skills stay with me, so building the unmaxed skills in the next world will become much easier.
*Angry growls* My stomach's growling brings me out of my thoughts. Putting away the system menu, I make my way down the tree I was perched in, grateful that the system seemed to be more forgiving in my first mission world, and went to put my new hunting skills to the test.
A little while later, after some much needed practice in my new body, and a few tries, I managed to catch a couple of rabbits. My sharp fangs, claws, and speed in this form aiding my hunt.
Rabbits in my jaws, I look through the memories I unlocked and focus on learning how to shift my form, as my body changes I grab the rabbits with my newly shifted hands, shaking out my fox-like bright red hair the same color as the little furry ears on top my head, stretch the muscles in my newly obtained body, my fluffy tail swishing around to my movements.
It really was quite lovely.
Paying no mind to my lack of clothes, I was never I shy one when it came to my body in my last life, so why start now.
"Mmmm, I missed having a physical body as a ghost, and this one isn't bad." I had been too busy when I was in my personal new world to really enjoy having a body again.
"I have dinner, now time to grab some firewood." I look at the rabbits in my hand, sit them in the tree I had been sleeping in, and began to walk towards an old fallen tree I passed on my hunt.
About half way there the bushes I was passing shook, a small whine sounding from underneath them. My head cocks to one side out of curiosity as I lift the branches of the bushes, and push them to the side. Underneath the bushes is a little wolf pup, it's brown and gray coat is spoted with blood, and the little one is shivering with fear. The scents staining the air.
The fear in his little eyes far too human to be a normal wolf pup, he has to be a little beastman wolf pup. It's shivers get worse, and it starts to whimper as I get to my knees and reach out to it.
He is far too young to be on his own, especially this far from a village. The nearest one was a two day walk east from here. Something must have happened during his hunt with his father and brothers, male beastmen will normally take their male offspring out to hunt small animals and birds after they get old enough.
Situations like the one that happened to this body were rare, and females were so few that they didn't need to hunt normally. It was almost unthinkable to ask the rare females to risk injury hunting. The villagers that tortured this body's original soul, are the type that other beastmen would have scorned.
"It's okay now, Little one. You are safe now..." My voice is somber as I pick him up, and I frown, the scent of the blood and death belonging to multiple sources... all but one of them related...
I settle the wounded pup on one of my arms as he whimpers, and continue to quickly gather the wood for a fire using my other arm, and my tail to balance it when reaching for more.
His father and brothers were either injured or dead, and no beastman would let his pups be injured if it could be helped. It was likely the father was the first to die trying to save his children, and this pup was likely the only one to escape alive. Especially if it made it this far from the village.
I'll have to take him back to his village to find his mother, but first things first. He's probably hungry, and I need to treat any wounds he has, and carefully search the area for his surviving family members. I don't know who or what did this, but I do know it's dangerous. When I go search I'll keep to the trees, most beastman won't bother with the trees unless they are birds or felines, but there was only wolf scents on the pup so I should be fine.
Being a fox I'm smaller, faster and more agile than the wolves. Wolves on the other hand are bigger, stronger, and will travel in packs more often than not. It's not ideal if they think that I'm the one who killed the others, so I'll need to bring the corpses back, and explain my findings. Hopefully being a female will clear me of suspicion, I'll need to make sure that the scents don't come off the pup, they are evidence to both clear me, and convict the killer.
Going back to where I left the rabbits, I crouch down setting the pup gently to the side, toss the wood and rabbits in my bag, looking through it and pulling out a roll of bandages and a heath salve. I gently lift the pup back into my arms, treat his wounds wrap them, and grab my bag after standing back up. If it was just me, camping here would have been fine, but with the pup I'll need a safer place, maybe I can find a small cave or an abandoned den nearby.
With this thought in mind I walk through the forest towards the mountain cliffside in the near distance, food can wait a little longer, safety will become the most important.
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